Ukraine Will Persist with NATO Goal, Zelenskiy Says as Receives Scholz

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz attend a meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine February 14, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz attend a meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine February 14, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
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Ukraine Will Persist with NATO Goal, Zelenskiy Says as Receives Scholz

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz attend a meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine February 14, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz attend a meeting in Kyiv, Ukraine February 14, 2022. (Ukrainian Presidential Press Service/Handout via Reuters)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday his country would continue to seek membership of the NATO transatlantic military alliance despite pressure to cede that aspiration to avoid war with Russia.

Ukraine's envoy to Britain had suggested Kyiv may reconsider its NATO bid but later backtracked while acknowledging concessions could be on offer amid Western warnings of a potentially imminent Russian invasion.

The Kremlin, which has more than 100,000 soldiers massed on Ukraine's border, denies planning to invade the former Soviet state, but says it could take unspecified "military-technical" action unless demands are met.

Those include promises from NATO never to admit Ukraine and to withdraw forces from Eastern Europe.

"Today, many journalists and many leaders are hinting a little to Ukraine that it is possible not to take risks, not to constantly raise the issue of future membership in the alliance, because these risks are associated with the reaction of the Russian Federation," said Zelenskiy at a joint news conference with Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Kyiv.

"I believe that we should move along the path we have chosen."

Scholz said it was strange Russia should raise this issue anyhow given it was not immediately on the agenda.

'By your side'

He told reporters he saw "no reasonable justification" for Russia's border buildup, and that Moscow should accept offers to discuss European security.

Scholz's trip was part of a flurry of diplomacy to de-escalate the crisis through dialogue and the threat of sanctions. On Tuesday, Scholz will fly to Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The chancellor has ratcheted up engagement in the Ukraine crisis over the past week after critics accused him of lack of leadership and mixed signals in one of Europe's worst security crises in decades.

"Germany stands right by your side," he said on Monday, underscoring that the country was Ukraine's biggest financial backer and announcing a new credit of 150 million euros ($170 million).

Ukrainian officials have publicly criticized Germany for refusing to sell weapons to Kyiv - Berlin argues it cannot due to its bloody 20th century history - and over reluctance to pull the plug on a controversial Russian-German gas pipeline project.

Ukraine as well as Western allies argue the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which is built but not yet operational, would enable Russia to cut Ukraine out of Europe's energy supply and make it more vulnerable to Russian invasion.

In recent weeks, Scholz has toughened his rhetoric on the cost to Russia of any new attack on Ukraine. But he has not vowed to end Nord Stream 2 or linked it to potential sanctions.



Thousands Protest Housing Crunch, High Rents in Barcelona

Demonstrators march to protest the skyrocketing cost of renting an apartment in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Demonstrators march to protest the skyrocketing cost of renting an apartment in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
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Thousands Protest Housing Crunch, High Rents in Barcelona

Demonstrators march to protest the skyrocketing cost of renting an apartment in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)
Demonstrators march to protest the skyrocketing cost of renting an apartment in Barcelona, Spain, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Emilio Morenatti)

Thousands of Spaniards rallied in downtown Barcelona on Saturday to protest the skyrocketing cost of renting an apartment in the popular tourist destination.
People held up homemade signs in Spanish reading “Fewer apartments for investing and more homes for living,” and “The people without homes uphold their rights.”
The issue has become one of the leading concerns for the southern European Union country, mirroring the housing crunch across many parts of the world.
The average rent for Spain has doubled in the last decade. The price per square meter has risen from 7.2 euros in 2014 to 13 euros this year, according to the popular online real estate website Idealista. The growth is even more acute in cities like Barcelona and Madrid. Incomes meanwhile have failed to keep up, especially for younger people in country with chronically high unemployment.
Protestor Samuel Saintot said he is “frustrated and scared” after being told by the owners of the apartment he has rented for the past 15 years in Barcelona’s city center that he must vacate the premises. He suspects that the owners want him out so they renovate it and boost the price.
“Even looking in a 20- or 30-kilometer radius outside town, I can’t even find anything within the price range I can afford,” he told The Associated Press. “And I consider myself a very fortunate person, because I earn a decent salary. And even in my case, I may be forced to leave town.”
A report by the Bank of Spain indicates that nearly 40% of Spaniards who rent dedicate an average of 40% of their income to paying rents and utilities, compared to the European Union average of 27% of renters in that strained economic circumstance.
“We are talking about a housing emergency. It means people having many difficulties both in accessing and staying in their homes,” said Ignasi Martí, professor for Esade business school and head of its Dignified Housing Observatory.